Generation Z and beyond: Co-evolution of human capabilities and intelligent technologies in the 21st century (GenZ)

As new technologies are rapidly developing and becoming more intelligent, invisible and ubiquitous, the entanglement of these technologies with human everyday life presents a 21st-century challenge and transformation that will not exclude any individuals, communities or processes. In spite of this, contemporary approaches to the technological transformation take the human-being for granted and are too narrow. They merely focus on how humans, communities or societies react to new technologies and how people use a technology after it has been developed and designed; or they predict dystopian futures emerging from the co-existence between humans and technology. This is not enough. A concerted response is needed to generate research-based knowledge about the co-evolution of humans and intelligent technologies, making possible the renewal of human capabilities and competences in all walks of life.

GenZ responds to this need with the following themes:

Enabling co-evolution: Capabilities and competences of individuals and interactions